Women's Basketball Hall of Fame facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame

The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
Established	1999 (1999)
Location	700 Hall of Fame Drive, Knoxville, Tennessee, 37915
Type	Sport hall of fame

The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame celebrates people who have made a big difference in women's basketball. It opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. This is the only place like it that honors all levels of women's basketball.

Knoxville is famous for loving women's basketball. It's also home to the University of Tennessee's Lady Vols team. Their former coach, Pat Summitt, was one of the first people to join the Hall of Fame. In 2017, the Hall of Fame turned 19. It added six new members, bringing the total to 157 honored people.

People can be chosen for the Hall of Fame in different ways. These include being a Coach, Player, International Player, or someone who has helped the sport a lot.

What's Inside the Hall of Fame?

The Campus

The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame has the world's largest basketball! It sits on the north side of the building. This giant basketball is 30 feet tall and weighs 10 tons.

You can also test your basketball skills on three courts inside. These courts show the Hall's goal: "honoring the past, celebrating the present, and promoting the future" of women's basketball. There's a timed dribbling course and a passing area. You can even take fun photos pretending to be players from different times in history.

Pat Summitt Rotunda

The Pat Summitt Rotunda is right at the entrance. This area honors Pat Summitt. She was a founding member of the Hall of Fame. She was also part of the first group of people inducted in 1999.

Outside, the courtyard is shaped like a basketball. It's made of many bricks with special messages. Many bricks honor guests, inductees, and others who wanted to leave their mark.

Hall of Honor

The Hall of Honor is where you can learn about each person inducted into the Hall of Fame. It shows all their amazing achievements.

Eastman Statue

The Eastman Statue stands at the entrance of the Hall of Fame. This huge bronze statue is 17 feet tall. It was made by Elizabeth MacQueen. The statue shows the Hall's mission to "honor the past, celebrate the present and promote the future" of women's basketball. Each year, new Hall of Fame members get a smaller copy of this statue. It's called the "Eastman."

Basketball Trailblazers

This section celebrates teams that made a big impact on women's basketball history.

All American Red Heads

The All American Red Heads played for 50 years, from 1936 to 1986. This is the longest time any women's professional team has played! Mr. and Mrs. C. M. Olson started the team in Missouri. The team was known for its fun tricks on the court. They even played against men's teams. In 1972, the Red Heads won 500 out of 642 games against men. They played in all 50 states, Mexico, Canada, and the Philippines. The team was very popular and was in many national magazines. They were seen as the best women's basketball team in the world.

Edmonton Commercial Graduates Basketball Club

The Edmonton Commercial Graduates Basketball Club started in Canada in 1915. John Percy Page coached them. Only 38 women ever played for this special club. Winnie Martin was their first captain. The Grads played 522 official games in Canada, the United States, and Europe. They had an incredible record of 502 wins and only 20 losses over 25 years! Many people think they were the greatest women's team ever. They even won 4 unofficial Olympic titles at the Olympic Games between 1924 and 1936.

Wayland Baptist Flying Queens

The Wayland Baptist Flying Queens got their name because they traveled by private planes! This started in 1950. They were the first women's team to get athletic scholarships. The Queens were known for their amazing talent and style. They even warmed up with fancy drills like the Harlem Globetrotters. From 1953 to 1958, they had an incredible 131-game winning streak! During this time, they won four national championships. Wayland is still the only women's team in history to win 1,300 games.

Mighty Macs

The Immaculata Mighty Macs teams from 1972-1974 won the first three national championships for college women's basketball. Immaculata is seen as the starting place for modern college women's basketball. The Mighty Macs were also the first women's team to appear on national television. They were also the first women's team to play at Madison Square Garden. Their inspiring story was even made into a movie called "The Mighty Macs" in 2011.

Delta State Teams

The Delta State teams from 1975, 1976, and 1977 won three national championships in a row. After not having a women's basketball program for 40 years, Delta State came back strong. In their second season, they beat Immaculata College, who had won the last three championships. Delta State went undefeated that year with a 28-0 record. During their three championship years, they had an amazing 93 wins and only 4 losses. This included a record of 51 straight wins!

USA Women's Basketball Teams

The 1976 USA Women's Basketball team won the United States' first medal in Olympic women's basketball. They earned the silver medal. This showed the world that the USA would be a strong force in women's basketball. Since 1976, USA Women's Basketball Teams have won 7 gold medals and 1 bronze in the Olympics. The 1976 team helped pave the way for this success.

The 1996 USA Olympic Basketball Team was incredibly dominant. They won the Olympic gold medal in Atlanta. This team had a perfect 60-0 record, including their training games. They were more popular than any women's basketball team before them. They drew a record number of fans during the Olympics.

Helms Foundation

The Helms Foundation was started in 1936. It chose national championship teams and All-American teams for many college sports, including women's basketball. They also looked back at basketball history to rank teams from 1901. The Foundation closed in 1982. Thirteen members of the Helms Foundation are also in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

Hall of Fame Inductees

Here are some of the amazing people who have been inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

Class of 1999

Class of 2000

Class of 2001

Class of 2002

Class of 2003

Class of 2004

Class of 2005

Class of 2006

Class of 2007

Class of 2008

Class of 2009

Class of 2010

Class of 2011

Class of 2012

Class of 2013

Class of 2014

Class of 2015

Class of 2016

Class of 2017

Class of 2018

Class of 2019

Class of 2021

Class of 2022

Class of 2023

Images for kids

• 

  A robot for kids

See Also

• List of sports awards honoring women
• List of members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
  • List of players in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
  • List of coaches in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
• FIBA Hall of Fame
  • List of members of the FIBA Hall of Fame
• International Women's Sports Hall of Fame
• Women's Basketball Coaches Association